To further develop our SCH project, I wanted to reflect and apply specific aspects of Ashley’s ‘perspectives on engagement’, used to critically respond to methods of public engagement in the Dead Sea Scrolls: Words that Changed the World exhibition at the Royal Ontario Museum, to evidence of public engagement within St Cecilia’s Hall. Ashley’s argument breaks down the limitations of public engagement for DSS into categories of perspectives; curatorial, intercultural, marketing, interacting and political. I found the most relevant key points to SCH in the intellectual or curatorial perspective and engagement viewed as participation and interaction.

Ashley presents the idea of the project’s intellectual curating as a ‘scholarly exercise’ that engages the audience though traditional modes to dispense knowledge and suggests this further distances the viewer from the objects by effectively ‘historicising’ them, removing their social context and link to present day political issues. A way I believe SCH combats this is through their concert programme. MIMED (2018) states, ‘St Cecilia’s Hall is the only place in the world where it is possible to hear 18th century music in an 18th century concert hall played on 18th century instruments’. This is important for the museum, not as a ‘status marker’ as Ashley argues of the DSS ‘Engage the World’ tagline that promotes the museum to ‘celebrity’ status, rather, it has a historical link to a very present experience that informs the audience in a very inclusive way.

To expand on public interaction, I also found it valuable how the ROM visitors described their visit to be a ‘spiritual pilgrimage’ to see ‘real’ objects in the flesh and appreciate them. This lies very much with SCH goals in expanding their musical instrument collection, as they only acquire instruments that can be considered historic, (currently up to 20^th century), for which there is a genuine interest from the, (albeit niche), community to observe face to face. Whereas Ashley suggests the DSS events programme is lacking due to the focus given to a specific audience that can potentially provide funding or status to the museum, I believe the SCH public events programme, having already acquired their funding, has set out very clear educational/outreach projects in collaboration with other institutions/festivals, to attempt to attract and engage as big an audience as possible for their collection.

Our goal here is perhaps to incorporate further options for potential audiences that would enter on behalf of the historical context of the space itself. As well as architectural students/practitioners, this would include tourists and families, which our current project has already targeted. To conclude, Ashley’s observations equate to the DSS failing to fully engage their audience due to the transactional pull over meaningful content. Through including an aspect of the built halls history and heritage in our project we can increase the diversity of our audience and provide them with strong content that doesn’t just build from existing programmes/staff knowledge but also the significance of the hall that houses the collection. Visitors coming into see the objects will be met with the cultural implication of the building that contains them and vice versa. In this way Ashley’s ideal form of public engagement, a ‘contact zone’, where audiences and staff from various backgrounds can discuss and further understanding, will be achieved.

Ashley, S. (2014) ‘Engage the world’: Examining conflicts of Engagement in Public Museums’, International Journal of Cultural Policy, 20(3), pp. 261-280.

Deters, S. (2014) ‘The History and Future of Public Programming at Musical Instrument Museums Edinburgh’, Music in Art: International Journal for Music Iconography, 39(1/2), pp. 257-266.

MIMED (2018) Musical Instrument Museums Edinburgh Available at: https://collections.ed.ac.uk/mimed (Accessed: 17 October 2018).

University of Edinburgh (2017) St Cecilia’s Hall Events Available at: http://www.stcecilias.ed.ac.uk/whats-on/concerts/ (Accessed 17 October 2018).

Inspired by our recent workshop exploring 3D scanning and the Immersive History project, I wanted to highlight a similar type of digital technology utilised to captivate and accompany the ‘museum’ experience. Developed by French company Histovery, the HistoPad tablet uses AR tech to operate “augmented visit” solutions to tourist sites of historical importance.

I was able to use one last year when visiting the Palais des Papes, a medieval Gothic palace in Avignon, southern France. For me, the tablet completely enriched my experience, both in terms of interaction and knowledge. I was able to appreciate each room in the present and then use the tablet to view it in the past, selecting highlighted items to uncover additional information. This use of geolocation tagging also provided an immersive treasure hunt for children and families.

There are many correlations back to our SCH project ideas, (most notably the potential of digital technologies and specifically the inclusion of a children’s treasure hunt), but the aspect of the HistoPad I like the most is the sense of choice – it enhances not invades. Currently, one of our main ideas is to use audio guides with two modes, both will draw you through the museum, giving you music and information without overwhelming other visitors or staff, in a way, a simple embellishment of existing devices to draw engagement.

Histovery (2018) Histovery: Who are we? Available at: https://histovery.com/who-are-we/?lang=en (Accessed: 10 October 2018).

Palais des Papes (2018) HistoPad Pour Tous Available at: http://www.palais-des-papes.com/en/content/histopad-pour-tous (Accessed: 10 October 2018).

Provence Guide (2018) Palace of the Popes Available at: https://www.provenceguide.co.uk/cultural-heritage/avignon/palace-of-the-popes/provence-4615596-1.html (Accessed: 10 October 2018).

Collier’s article debates the effectiveness of ‘syndicates’, (small semi-independent student groups), in advancing cognitive skills in higher education. The review of evidence and literature in most cases point to the positive rewards of working within a team and peer group influence.

Overall, I found the benefits of engagement through interaction stood out to me the most. The article suggests student-led discussion provides a more open and relaxed environment to speak out and the syndicates are shown to shift in a variety of roles, (leadership/cooperation), and gain a better understanding of new concepts by finding alternate ways to express and explain, ultimately giving a more mature understanding and higher personal relevance to the material.

Relating this to our own research placement I can already see how a small, engaged group can flourish. We are from different but complimenting backgrounds in the Humanities, (History, Anthropology and Art), which I feel strengthens our discussions and potential collaborative projects due to the ability to ‘bounce’ off and build upon each other’s ideas and discoveries.

I found this the case in our first session together last week where we discussed potential end results for the brief and I came away with fresh ideas I had not previously considered, as well as a more reinvigorated approach to the project.

Collier, K. G. (1980). Peer-Group Learning in Higher Education: The Development of Higher Order Skills.

Hi & welcome to my blog!

My name is Amy and I am a full time masters student at University of Edinburgh. I will be using this blog to make critical reflections on the key themes explored in my degree course MScR Collections and Curating Practices.

Art as a subject for me has always been both my passion and my desired area for a potential career. I chose to fully immerse myself in the area during college by studying BTEC National Diploma in Art & Design with A-Level Photography and Art Foundation additionally in my third year. Following this I completed a Photography degree at University of Cumbria and found a love for research as well as historical interiors and heritage estates.

A photograph of Keddleston Hall from my final major project, a selection of my final degree work can be found here.

In my final year I photographed heritage spaces exclusively, exploring the romance and intrigue associated with them, what it means to photograph them and also to examine the museum as a context in itself. I hope to carry this interest further in my current course, primarily through my major research project (the mediation and interpretation of Abbotsford House in the borders of Scotland), but also from the influence of the guided group research placement within St Cecilias Hall, core course in collections: theories, practices and methods and option courses within History of Art.

I have transferable vocational experience from working at Starbucks Coffee during and after University. I started off as a Barista and advanced to running a store before moving to Edinburgh where I currently work as a Supervisor. Although management experience has been really valuable for me, it has also reinforced my want to capitalize and cultivate my background in art.

I hope to gain in the guided research placement skills and networks in a new setting, (perhaps Academic?), relating to the field I want to pursue, applying and expanding the vocational skills I already have along the way.